Transom reinforcement grid

ABSTRACT

A reinforcement grid for a vessel includes a plurality of spaced-apart, generally vertically extending walls coupled by lateral floor sections and lateral walls which are coupled to stringers, the transom, and the bottom of the vessel hull to strengthen the transom, thereby allowing a greater number of higher horsepower engines to be mounted to the vessel.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims priority under 35 U.S.C. § 119(e) and thebenefit of U.S. Provisional Application No. 61/079,569 entitled TRANSOMREINFORCEMENT GRID, filed on Jul. 10, 2008, by Christopher M. Gratz, theentire disclosure of which is incorporated herein by reference.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention relates to a reinforcement grid for the transom ofa vessel and a vessel with such a feature.

Frequently, open-style fishing boats are powered by one or two outboardengines mounted to the transom. For certain outboard engine combinationsand in some hull designs, it is not possible to terminate a longitudinalstringer in the stringer grid on the centerline of each engine. However,terminating a longitudinal stringer at each engine center is desirablesince it restrains the deflection on the transom laminate and transfersthe load imparted by the outboard engines into the vessel's structuralgrid. As open-style boats become larger, it has become desirable toincrease the engine size as well as the number of engines. When, forexample, three large horsepower engines are mounted to the transom of avessel, the load forces placed on the transom are greatly increased.Coupling the transom of the hull to a conventional stringer system andnot restraining the transom panel at each outboard engine can lead toundesirable deflections, stress, and fatigue of the laminate.

Thus, there is a need to improve the structural integrity of the transomof boats employing multiple engines with increased horsepower. This willallow the desired performance of the boats while maintaining theirstructural integrity.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The system of the present invention improves the rigidity of the transomto hull and stringer interface by providing a transom reinforcement gridmade of fiberglass which restrains the transom panel of the hull of thevessel at each outboard engine location. The reinforcing grid of thepresent invention comprises a three-dimensional box-like structurehaving spaced-apart longitudinal side walls coupled by floor sectionsand front and rear end walls which conform to the stringers of a givenvessel design. The grid couples the stringers to the transom and hull ofa vessel to provide lateral and longitudinal support for the transom.

The reinforcement grid can be molded of fiberglass material and have itsexterior, visible surfaces gel-coated. The grid is formed to fit aparticular boat design and is bonded to existing boats utilizing abonding adhesive, such as methacrylate. The reinforcement grid of thepresent invention, therefore, comprises a plurality of spaced-apart,generally longitudinally and vertically extending walls coupled by floorsections and walls which extend laterally in a boat and which adjoin andare coupled to stringers, the transom, and the inner bottom surface ofthe vessel hull to strengthen the transom, thereby allowing a greaternumber of higher horsepower engines to be mounted to the transom of thevessel.

These and other features, objects and advantages of the presentinvention will become apparent upon reading the following descriptionthereof together with reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a rear perspective view of a vessel embodying the presentinvention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of a reinforcement grid of the presentinvention;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the reinforcement grid shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a left side elevational view of the grid shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 5 is a front elevational view of the structure shown in FIG. 2;

FIG. 6 is a rear perspective view of the stringer system of a vessel,showing the reinforcement grid installed therein;

FIG. 7 is an upper fragmentary, rear perspective view of a vessel hulland stringer system, showing the placement of the reinforcement gridtherein;

FIG. 8 is an upper front perspective view of a vessel hull and stringersystem showing the reinforcement grid mounted therein;

FIG. 9 is a rear port side fragmentary perspective view of the bottom ofthe grid insert and stringer assembly prior to mounting into the vesselhull;

FIG. 10 is a rear starboard side fragmentary perspective view of thebottom of the grid insert and stringer assembly prior to mounting intothe vessel hull;

FIG. 11 is a fragmentary upper front perspective view of the grid insertmounted within the hull of a vessel; and

FIG. 12 is a fragmentary vertical cross-sectional view through thecenterline of the vessel.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENT

As used herein, the term “longitudinally”, with respect to the directionof orientation of the grid in a vessel, pertains to the fore and aftdirection of the vessel; “transversely,” “outwardly” or “laterally”, asused herein, refers to port to starboard directions of the vessel, while“vertically extending” has its normal bottom-to-top meaning. Vessel andboat may be used interchangeably to refer generally to a pleasure boator yacht made of a resinous or other material.

Referring initially to FIG. 1, there is shown an open style boat orvessel 100 which has a hull 50 and topside 110 which encloses the cabinand living area below. The vessel also includes a cockpit area 115 andbridge deck 120 enclosed by a hardtop 125 and windshield 130. The hull50 extends aft to a motor well area 53 and transom 72. The vessel 100 isa high performance fishing boat that is powered by three 350 HP outboardengines 51 and has the improved structure for reinforcing the transomarea of the hull of the present invention to accommodate the combinedover 1000 HP and weight of engines 51. The boat 100 illustrated in FIG.1 is a Pursuit® 375 Offshore using three Yamaha 350 HP engines. In orderto maintain the structural integrity of the hull which includes astringer system for strength, and utilize such relatively large engines,the reinforcement grid of the present invention has been incorporatedinto the hull 50 and is now described.

As seen in FIGS. 2-5, the reinforcement grid 10 of the present inventioncomprises an integrally molded, somewhat box-like structure having, inthe embodiment shown, two sections 12 and 14 joined by a bridge section16. The grid includes outer longitudinally and vertically extending sidewalls 11 and 15 and spaced-apart inner longitudinally and verticallyextending inner side walls 17 and 19. Floors 21 and 23 extendtransversely between walls 11, 17 and 15, 19 at their lower end. Theouter side walls 11 and 15 each terminate in an inclined laterallyoutwardly extending flange 25 (FIGS. 9 and 10), which is angled, as seenin FIG. 4, to conform to the angle of the transom 72 to the hull 50 of avessel 100 (FIGS. 1 and 12). The side walls 11 and 15 also include a toplaterally outwardly extending flange 27 and a forward outwardly anddownwardly inclined flange 29 terminating in an outwardly generallyhorizontally extending flange 30. Front walls 32 and 34 integrally tietogether the side walls 11, 17 and 15, 19 with floors 21 and 23,respectively. The bridge section 16 includes a rear wall 35 which, asseen in FIGS. 5 and 7-10, is integrally molded with side walls 17 and 19and has curvilinear side walls 36 and 38 which extend upwardly andterminate in a top wall 39. Walls 36 and 38 are coupled at the forwardend by an inclined wall 40 integrally coupled to horizontal forwardlyextending section 42, which is coupled to side walls 17 and 19 of thegrid 10. The outer side wall 15 likewise includes laterally outwardlyextending flanges 27′, 29′, and 30′.

The insert grid 10 of the present invention is bonded to the stringers,the vessel bottom, and the transom to tie them together below the motorwell area 53 (FIGS. 1 and 12) without interfering with the mounting ofthe motors 51 to the transom 72. The geometry of the particular gridwill vary depending upon the vessel into which it is mounted. Thepreferred embodiment shown herein is shaped to fit within a Pursuit® 375Offshore vessel 100 as seen in FIG. 1, which will accommodate three 350horsepower outboard engines 51 (FIGS. 1 and 12) with the reinforcinggrid 10 as disclosed. The grid walls have a nominal thickness of fromabout 0.329 inches to about 0.374 inches, in one embodiment, and oncebonded to the hull of the vessel 100 provides increased rigidity andstrength to the transom area of the vessel.

Reinforcement grid 10 is integrally molded of fiberglass in aconventional manner and is shaped to fit within the stringers of a givenvessel design, as illustrated in FIGS. 6-10. As seen in FIGS. 9 and 10,the fiberglass reinforcement grid has gel-coated surfaces, includingwalls 11, 15 and floors 21, 23, which are molded in a mold in aconventional manner. The outer surfaces of floors 21 and 23 are bondedto the hull bottom 52 (FIGS. 7, 8 and 12) of vessel hull 50, whichincludes a stringer system including longitudinally extending stringers56 and 57, as well as the usual laterally extending cross struts 59defining a stringer assembly 60, as seen in FIG. 6. The reinforcementgrid 10 fits between the ends of stringers 55-58 with the front walls 32and 34 bonded to the lateral stringer 59 utilizing bonding adhesives,such as methacrylate 61, as illustrated in FIGS. 6, 9, 10 and 12. Theflanges 27, 29, 30, 27′, 29′, and 30′ likewise are bonded to thestringer assembly 60, as best seen in FIGS. 6, 9 and 10, utilizingmethacrylate. Rear flanges 25 and wall 35 are bonded to the laminate 20of the transom 72 of vessel hull 50, as illustrated in FIGS. 10 and 11.

The reinforcing grid will be configured to fit the stringer system, thehull and the transom configuration of a particular vessel into which itis mounted and can be secured to the structure of the vessel by eithersuitable bonding agents, fasteners or other conventional means typicallyemployed for securing structural components of a vessel. The inventionlikewise can be used to reinforce the transom area of any vessel,including those which have inboard/outdrive systems or inboard engineswith conventional propeller shafts.

It will become apparent those skilled in the art that variousmodifications to the preferred embodiment of the invention as describedherein can be made without departing from the spirit or scope of theinvention as defined by the appended claims.

1. A transom reinforcement grid for a vessel comprising: a box-likestructure having a plurality of spaced-apart, longitudinally extendingwalls joined by laterally extending walls and floor sections to providea reinforcement grid which is adapted to be coupled to an existingstringer, the bottom of a vessel and the vessel transom for reinforcingthe transom of a vessel.
 2. The grid as defined in claim 1 wherein saidgrid comprises at least two box-like structures, each having twolongitudinally extending side walls, laterally extending front walls andfloors and an integral bridge section coupling said two box-likestructures.
 3. The grid as defined in claim 2 wherein said grid includesoutwardly extending flanges for securing said grid to one or more of thetransom area, the hull bottom, or the stringer system of a vessel. 4.The grid as defined in claim 3 wherein said grid is integrally molded ofresin and fiberglass.
 5. The grid as defined in claim 4 wherein saidfiberglass has a thickness of from about 0.3 to about 0.4 inches.
 6. Thegrid as defined in claim 5 wherein said grid is bonded to stringers andthe hull of a vessel using a bonding adhesive.
 7. The grid as defined inclaim 6 wherein said bonding adhesive is methacrylate.
 8. A vessel witha transom reinforcement grid comprising: a hull defining the bottom ofsaid vessel; a transom coupled to the aft end of said hull; a stringersystem including longitudinally and laterally extending stringers bondedto said hull in spaced relationship to said transom; and a box-likereinforcement grid structure having a plurality of spaced-apart,longitudinally extending walls joined by laterally extending walls andfloor sections, said reinforcement grid secured between said transom ofsaid vessel, said stringer system, and said hull for reinforcing thetransom area of said vessel.
 9. The vessel as defined in claim 8 whereinsaid grid structure is secured by bonding.
 10. The vessel as defined inclaim 9 wherein said grid comprises at least two box-like structures,each having two longitudinally extending side walls, laterally extendingfront walls and floors and an integral bridge section coupling said twobox-like structures.
 11. The vessel as defined in claim 10 wherein saidgrid includes flanges for securing said grid to said transom of saidvessel.
 12. The vessel as defined in claim 11 wherein said grid isintegrally molded of resin infused fiberglass.
 13. The vessel as definedin claim 12 wherein said fiberglass has a thickness of from about 0.3 toabout 0.4 inches.
 14. The vessel as defined in claim 13 wherein saidgrid is bonded to stringers, the hull, and the transom of a vessel usinga bonding adhesive.
 15. The vessel as defined in claim 14 wherein saidbonding adhesive is methacrylate.
 16. A reinforcement grid forinstallation in the hull of a vessel for reinforcing the transom area ofthe vessel to accommodate multiple large horsepower engines, said gridcomprising: a plurality of spaced-apart, longitudinally extending wallsintegrally joined to one another by laterally extending walls and floorsto define a reinforcement grid, wherein said grid is shaped to fitwithin the hull of a vessel and be coupled to an existing stringer, thebottom of a vessel and the vessel transom for reinforcing the transomarea of the vessel.
 17. The grid as defined in claim 16 wherein saidgrid is shaped in at least two box-like structures, each having twolongitudinally extending side walls, laterally extending front walls andfloors and an integral bridge section coupling said two box-likestructures.
 18. The grid as defined in claim 17 wherein said gridincludes outwardly extending flanges for securing said grid to one ormore of the transom area, the hull bottom, or the stringer system of avessel.
 19. The grid as defined in claim 18 wherein said grid isintegrally molded of resin and fiberglass and is bonded to the stringersand the hull of a vessel using a bonding adhesive.
 20. The grid asdefined in claim 19 wherein said fiberglass has a thickness of fromabout 0.3 to about 0.4 inches.